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THE STORY 



THE MEMORIAL 



In Honor of the Founders 



OF THE 



Town of Milford, 



ERECTED BY THEIR DESCENDANTS AND THE CITIZENS 
OF MILFORD. 



Dedicated August 28th, iSS<j, 



The Town's 25oth Anniversary. 



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THE STORY OF THE MEMORIAL. 



AS the commencement of the 250th Year of Milford's 
history drew near, the people took their first official 
action in recognition of its importance, at its Annual Town 
Meeting, in Oct., 18S8, by appointing a committee to act with 
a committee to be appointed by the First Church, and with 
their joint action make proper arrangements for celebrating 
the event. The Town Committee thus appointed, consisted of 
Charles A. Tomlinson, Phineas S. Bristol, Nathan G. Pond, 
Wm. Cecil Uurand, and Henry C. Miles, who after earnest 
deliberation, decided that a substantial mark should be made 
in honor of the Founders; that such mark should unite 
utility with the picturesque, and at the same time, be typical 
of the men and the time of settlement. 

This idea could be best expressed in a Bridge of Stone 
over the river, upon whose banks their first habitations were 
placed, and near the spot where the first mill was erected. 

Our nation's first President had noted in his journal the 
beauty of the cascade on the west side, as he journeyed from 
New York to Boston, in Oct., 1789. As all traces of the set- 
tlers' graves had long been obliterated, and the stones that 
marked them (if any) destroyed, "Memorial Blocks" were 
suggested to keep in remembrance those men, and to give 
some data concerning them. 

At a special Town Meeting, the report of the com- 
mittee was read, and an appropriation of $3°°° was 
asked to defray the cost of the bridge alone, and that request 
was unanimously voted. At this point of the Committee's 
work, Mr. H. C. Miles refused to act further, giving as his 
reason, an unwillingness to incur any such expense, but 
personally willing to bear his share of the burden, and the 
Committee then called to its aid, Mr. Chas. H. Trowbridge. 

It was promised to the town, that all inscriptions, together 
with the Tower, should be private gifts, and in accordance 
with that promise, such contributions and a detail of the 
work is here given. 



As the tower was a prominent feature in the work and 
correspondingly expensive, much doubt was felt as to the 
ability of the Committee to raise the required amount, at least 
to erect a fitting structure in honor of the two governors, who, 
buried in our Grave-yard, were so important in the history of 
the colony. The door-step of Governor Law's house had been 
preserved by Capt, Marcus Stow, and was in possession of his 
daughter, Mrs. Mary S. Beardsley (wife of Hezekiah B. 
Beardsley), who refused to sell, but generously gave the stone 
to the Committee for such use and inscription as they saw fit. 
It was first contemplated placing it in the arch, over the 
Tower door, but the arch being inadequate, with other objec- 
tions, changed its setting to the east end of the. Bridge, and it 
is preserved in its entirety. The inscription reads : 

IN MEMORIAM 
JONATHAN LAW. 

GOVERNOUR OF THE COLONY OF 

CONNECTICUT 

FROM 1742 TO I750. 

THIS STONE, ONCE HIS DOORSTEP. 

Six persons contributed One hundred dollars each, Mrs. 
Mary A. C. Treat (the widow of Judge Amos S. Treat, of 
Bridgeport, and herself a descendant of the Governor), Robert 
Treat Payne, of Boston (who descends from the signer of the 
Declaration of Independence, also through Governor Treat's 
oldest son Samuel), Nathan A. Baldwin, and Wm. M. 
Merwin, two Milford men, who are liberal in all public mat- 
ters, Wm. E. Downs, of New Haven (but of Milford birth), 
and Henry A. Taylor, Esq., of New York. Dr. John S. 
Walker, $70, Samuel S. White, of Philadelphia and Milford, 
with his family, $100. Mrs. Martha J. Beard, Ex-Governor 
James E. English, Edwin P. Smith, Esq., Ex-Senator Geo. 
M. Gunn, Joseph Baldwin, Esq., of New York, fifty dollars 
each. 

Anson Treat Downes, Charles H. Pond, Winthrop Pond, 
General George H. Ford, Abner L. Train, Esq., Lieutenant- 
Governor Samuel E. Merwin, Allston Gerry, Esq., Reginald 
Anthon Lawrence, Joseph E. Earle, Charles H. Trowbridge, 
Timothy Bristol, Esq., of Charleston, S. C, Senator George 
N. Morse, Wm. B. Stoddard, Esq., Albert A. Baldwin, 
twenty-five dollars each. 



Tames T. Higby, George Gunn Baldwin, of Sioux City, 
Iowa, Wm. H. Law, Esq., of New Haven, Edward G. Miles, 
Thomas Fowler, Franklin Fowler, Frank M. Howe, David B. 
Ingersol, J. C. O'Conor, Jr., twenty dollars each. 

John Harvey Treat, of Lawrence, Mass., Mrs. Mary Pond 
Sill, of Lyme, Ct., Owen Treat Clark, John G. North, 
fifteen dollars each. 

Charles W. Beardsley, and Wm. Cecil Dnrand, twelve 
dollars fifty cents each. 

Lyman V. Treat, of N. H., Dennis Beach, Isaac C. Smith, 
Joseph Clark, Mrs. S. G. Champion, of N. H., Lyman Law, 
Nicholas M. Pond, of Osaka, Japan, Rev. George H. Griffin, 
ten dollars each. 

Besides many gifts of five dollars each, and from a child 
of two years, Alwater Treat Cnsial, of Anoka, Minn., two 
dollars. 

The inscription on the Treat stone is the gift of Stancliff 
B. Downes (son of Anson Treat Dowries, of New York), a 
man who has much pride in his Milford ancestry, which 
includes Treat, Bryan and Buckingham lines. 

The inscription is as follows : 

IN MEMORIAM 

ROBERT TREAT. 

FOR FORTY YEARS 
GOVERNOUK & DEPUTY GOV 

of the Colony of 

CONNECTICUT. 

Obiit 1710. 

The roof is in Spanish tile, made expressly for the Tower, 
at Akron, Ohio. A Lantern of ancient design hangs near the 
door and near the stone, showing the mark of Ansantuwoe, the 
Indian chief who signed the deed of purchase, given to Mr. 
William Fowler, Benjamin Fenn, Edmund Tapp, Zachanah 
Whitman and Alexander Bryan, on the 12th of February, 

1639, O. S. 

His mark was a bow and arrow. The keystone of the 
door arch has carved on it an ideal head of the chief, a gift 
of the Ansantuwoe Lodge of F. and A. M., No. 89. 



Note. — Names in italics have Treat blood. 



The door is of oak, on which hangs a door knocker of 
historic interest : it is from a house built by a son of Ensign 
George Clark, on his father's original home lot. On the porch 
of the house George Whitfield, in 1740, preached, and from 
his listeners sprung the congregation that afterward made the 
Plymouth Church. Majors David Baldwin and Edward Allen 
(men prominent in the Canadian wars), together with Garret 
Van Horn De Witt, occupied the house, and from its present 
owner, Charles W. Beardsley, member of the Legislature for 
Milford during its 250th year, and who married a daughter of 
Elnathan Baldwin, its last owner, gives the knocker. 

Over the door are the figures 1639, in worked iron. 

A buttress extends from the Tower towards the north, 
ending in a seat made from the first mill-stone used in the 
Colony, on which is inscribed : 

MR. WILLIAM FOWLER. 
Obit 1660. 

THE FOUNDER OF THIS THE FIRST 
MILL IN THE COLONY IN 1639, 
WHEREIN HE USED THIS STONE. 

Mr. Fowler held the three important positions of Trustee, 
Pillar of the Church and Judge. 

At the combination of Milford and Guilford with New 
Haven, in 1643, and the establishment of the jurisdiction of 
" the New Haven Colony," Mr. Fowler was selected as the 
Chief Magistrate of Milford, which he held for several years, 
and was succeeded at his death by Mr. Benjamin Fenn. He 
was evidently a man of much practical knowledge, energetic 
and persevering. He early discovered the advantages and 
facilities furnished by the river or stream running through 
the town, and at once determined to secure them to the 
community. 

Since that period nine generations of the Fowlers have 
successfully conducted its operations, and recently the eighth 
William Fowler has completed the fifth mill in succession on 
the precise spot, confirming the wisdom of his honored ances- 
tor whose keen eye discerned the advantages and facilities 
presented, when single handed in a country scarcely a year old. 
He accepted the situation and at once proceeded to control 
the water power in its natural condition, to block out a 



location, to build the dam, quarry out the millstones and 
obtain the iron and other necessary materials with the limited 
means of transportation the wilderness afforded, and all this 
was to be done in the midst of arduous duties thrust upon him, 
filling various offices, and a leading citizen in the numerous 
projected improvements in progress. 

The stone presented to the committee by the present 
energetic proprietor and bearing the inscription, tradition says, 
has lain dormant about the premises for centuries, and which 
on examination by geologists and antiquarians, has been pro- 
nounced as doubtless the original millstone quarried and hewn 
out by Mr. Fowler and used temporarily, until a better 
substitute could be obtained. 

It is now acknowledged to be the oldest business estab- 
lishment of its kind in the country; and the present proprietor's 
grandson is the ioth Wm. Fowler in a direct line. 

On the buttress is cut Law, Order, Morality, Liberty, 
Charity, to typify the principles that buttress our institu- 
tions. The gift, a special contribution of Charles H. 
Trowbridge, Esq. 

At the west end of the south coping is placed a stone four 
feet wide and five feet six inches high, with an inscription on 
its curved front, in remembrance of the spiritual leader of the 
Colonists. It reads : 

IN MF.MORIAM 

PETER PRUDDEX. 

FIRST PASTOR IN MILFORD. 

Obit 1656. 

THE VOICE OF ONE CRYING IN THE 

WILDERNESS, PREPARK YE 

THE WAV OF THE LORD, MAKE HIS PATHS STRAIGHT. 

Giving the text ot the first sermon he preached in the Colony, 
at New Haven, on the afternoon of the iSth of April, 1638, 
under a large spreading oak, which stood near the present 
corner of George and College streets. The stone is the gift of 
the Pastor's descendants — a liberal contribution coming from 
James W. Beardsley, Esq., of Bridgeport, who descends from 
the pastor's daughter Abigail, who married Joseph Walker — 
together with gifts from the Strongs and Ponds, descendants 
of Ephraim Strong, who married Mary Prudden, great grand- 



daughter of Peter, and sister to Job Prudden, first pastor of 
Plymouth Church (Milford). 

At the east end of the same coping stands a similar stone 
in remembrance of the temporal leader or guide, on which is 
inscribed : 

IN MEMORIAM 

CAPT. THOMAS TIBBALS. 
Obit 1703. 

IN CONSIDERATION OF HIS 

HELPFULNESS ATT THE FIRST COM- 

MING TO MILFORD TO SHOW THE 

FIRST COMERS THE PLACE. 

(Land Records.) 

This stone is the contribution of his descendants, a liberal 
portion coming from Fredk. L. Tibbals. The inscription is the 
gift of the children and gr. children of Joseph Whiting 
Tibbals. Thomas Tibbals had been engaged in the Pequot 
war, and in the pursuit of the remnant of the tribe, that fled 
to the Fairfield swamps the year previous, had seen the river, 
and for his services as guide the next spring, the Colonists 
granted him land, and in the deed made his " usefulness " the 
consideration. 

Between the larger blocks are placed memorial stones to 
ten men prominent in Milford's history, most of them holding 
positions of trust and honor in the church or Town offices. 
Starting from the east, the first is to 

WILLIAM FOWLER 2nd. 

Obit 1682. 

MARY TAPP his Wife. 

He was the son of the founder of the mill, and his wife 
was the daughter of Edmund and Ann Tapp (18), and sister 
to Jane, the wife of Governor Robert Treat. 

He came to Milford with his father and his brother John, 
who moved to Guilford in 1649. William spent much of his 
early life in New Haven, where he became a large land-holder, 
but on the death of his father in 1660, he returned to Milford, 
inheriting his possessions, and died there in 1682. He was the 
ancestor of all the Milford Fowlers. In East Haven, Fowler's 
Cove and Fowler's Creek derived their names from him. 
About two miles from New Haven and on the site of the 



establishment for the manufacture of fire arms, erected by Eli 
Whitney, the inventor of the cotton gin, Wra. Fowler 2d, built a 
mill in 1645, which the town bought of him when he returned 
to Milford in 1659, for ^"180. From the Colonial Records 
we find he was a member of the House of Deputies from 1673 
to 16S0, from Milford, serving on various committees, and on 
a secret council of war in reference to hostilities with the 
Dutch upon the eastern end of Long Island and the main land. 
His second wife was the widow of (7). This stone is the 
gift of John W. Fowler, Esq., the present Town Clerk, and for 
many years Judge of Probate, and whose gr. grandfather and 
gr. gr. grandfather, both John Fowlers, were also Town Clerks, 
making the office for seventy years held by the same name. 

No. 2. ZACIIARIAH WHITMAN. 

Obit 1662. 
SARAH BISCOE his Wife. 

He was one of the Trustees in the first deed, one of the 
judges chosen by the settlers to act in civil affairs, and one of 
the seven pillars of the church. 

He married in England Sarah Biscoe, who was cousin to 
Nathaniel Briscoe, one of the settlers. 

Zachariah Whitman calls John Stream (23) in his will his 
cousin (meaning nephew). He also calls George Clark the 
same. Benjamin Fenn (5), Thomas Welsh (20), and Richard 
Piatt (10), were his executors. 

(This stone is the gift of Charles W. Farnam, Esq., of 
New Haven, whose mother was a Whitman.) 

No. 3. ALEXANDER BRYAN. 

Obit 1679. 
ANNA his Wife. 

He was a prominent merchant in Milford, and with his 
son Richard stood in such high credit at Boston that his note 
of hand passed current as bank bills in the present day, says 
Lambert. He was the son of Thomas Bryan, of Aylesbury, 
England, and was baptised there, September 29th, 1602. His 
wife was Anna, only child of Robert Baldwin and Joane, his 
wife. From 1668 to 1673, he was assistant Governor of the 
Colony of Connecticut, and in Milford was one of the pur- 
chase trustees. (This stone is the gift of Mrs. Jean E. True, 
of Washington, D. C, who was by birth a Bryan.) 



IO 

No. 4. RICHARD MILES. 

Obit 1667. 
KATHERINE his Wife. 

A man prominent in the affairs of both Mil ford and New 
Haven, to which place he afterward removed and where he 
died ; was one of the judges in civil affairs, and retained his 
share in Milford lands, which were afterward occupied by his 
son Samuel, from whom all of this name in Milford descend, 
excepting the family of David and Mary (Carrington) Miles, 
who came through his son, Captain John. His widow Kathe- 
rine died in Wallingford, in 1683, aged 95, where her tombstone 
can yet be seen. From his will, it is learned, she was a widow 
with children when he married her, and evidently possessed 
considerable means, which the children remaining in England 
inherited. Edward G. Miles, now Town Treasurer, gives this 
stone. He also descends on his mother's side from Richard 
Miles. 

No 5. BENJAMIN FENN. 

Obit 1672. 
SARAH his Wife. 

Benjamin Fenn was of much prominence in Milford affairs 
as well as those of the Colony. He was first in Dorchester, and 
probably came to this country in 1630, in the ship Mary and 
John, at the same time with Governor Winthrop, was assistant 
Governor from 1665 to 1672. His estate was large both here 
and in England, and he left lands in Aylesbury. His wife 
was Sarah Baldwin, daughter of Sylvester and Sarah (Bryan) 
Baldwin, who was baptised in 1621, in Aston, Clinton, Bucks 
County, England, and was sister to (7) and to Mary, wife of 
Robert Plum (17). 

An unbroken line of ten Benjamin Fenns can be traced, 
and the son of Benjamin the settler married the only daughter 
of Jasper Gunn (6). The sons of Nathan Fenn give this 
stone. 

No. 6. JASPER GUN.V 

Obit 1670. 
SARAH ins Wife. 

Came in the ship Defense in 1635 ; he was the first physician 
in Milford, and there is good reason to believe that he prac- 
ticed some time in Hartford. His descendants have in most 



every generation represented Miiford in the Legislature, but as 
a clan have not increased rapidly. In his will he calls John 
Smith (29) and Joseph Peck (28) his brothers (probably 
brothers-in-law), and both of them witnessed the will. It is a 
quaint document. The sons get all the land and stock, and 
his daughter Mehitable (the wife of Benjamin Fenn, Jr.), is 
willed " one of Mr. Hooker's books and my Aynsworth Com- 
munion of Saints." 

Ex-Senator George Miles Gunn gives this stone : 

Xo. 7- RICHARD BALDWIN. 

Obit 1665. 
ELIZABETH his Wife. 

He was the son of Sylvester and Sarah (Bryan) Baldwin 
(see coping north side under 17), baptized in Parish Ashton, 
Clinton, Buckinghamshire, Eng., August 25, 1622. He was 
prominent in many of the land purchases and divisions in 
Miiford, was member of the General Court for the Town from 
May, 1662, to May, 1664, and was one of the Committee "for 
ye consumating of matters betwixt Connecticutt and us " when 
the two Colonies were joined in 1664. He married in 1643, 
Elizabeth, the sister of Joseph Alsop, of New Haven, and she 
after Richard's death married as second wife John Fowler, 
2nd (1). His son Sylvanus married Mildred, the daughter of 
Rev. Peter Prudden. 

Hon. Charles Candee Baldwin, Judge of the Circuit Court 
of Ohio, and editor of the Baldwin Genealogy, contributes this 
stone, and to this gentleman the writer is indebted for most of 
the information concerning the Baldwins. 

No. 8. DEACON GEORGE CLARKE. 

Obit 1690. 
MARY his Wife. 

As there were two George Clarks among the settlers of 
1639, much error has grown out of it, as to the correct line of 
descent of the Clarks, but the writer is confident that from the 
Deacon descend all of that name in Miiford, and those that 
trace to his son Samuel, who married Mary, the daughter of 
George the " Farmer " (18), have, of course, the blood of both 
Georges. There has sprung an unusually large progeny from 
one man, and as a rule, they have been thrifty. He probably 



died without a will, but the probate records show that he left 
a large estate. 

His three sons were prominent, especially Ensign George, 
and his daughter Sarah was the mother of Governor Jonathan 
Law, altho' Lambert says it was Farmer George's daughter. 

David N. Clark, who descends from his son Thomas, gives 
this stone. 

No. q. THOMAS BUCKINGHAM. 

Obit 1657. 
HANNAH his Wife. 

From this man a goodly race have sprung, and the blood 
is widely scattered. He was one of the " pillars " of the 
church, and after Mr. Prudden's death in 1650, he went to 
Boston " to seek for them a Pastor " (says the Church record), 
and died while there. 

His grandson, Rev. Stephen Buckingham, was member of 
the Corporation of Yale College from 1716 to 1732, and Hon. 
Win, A. Buckingham, Governor of Connecticut for eight years 
and afterward U. S. Senator, descends from his youngest son, 
Thomas. 

His daughter Hannah married Thomas Welch (20). 

Frank Buckingham, a descendant of his oldest son, Daniel, 
gives the stone. 

No. 10. DEACON RICHARD PLATT. 

Obit 1684. 
MARY his Wife. 

A large portion of Milforders descend from Deacon 
Richard. Senator Thomas C. Piatt, of New York State, is a 
descendant, and the town of Plattsville, N. Y., was named from 
this family. The office of Deacon in the First Church has been 
held for generations by the Platts, who as a clan have been 
thrifty, holding to their possessions, and are to-day large land- 
holders in the Town. Professor Johnson T. Piatt, of Yale 
Law School, a descendant from his son Isaac, gives this stone. 

On the coping under these ten stones is cut the sentiment: 
"GOD SIFTED A WHOLE NATION THAT HE MIGHT 
SEND CHOICE GRAIN INTO THE WILDERNESS," a 
gift of Rev. Albert W. Lyman (of Brooklyn), formerly pastor 
of the First Church of Milford. 



13 

Twenty-four stones are placed on the north coping, and 
commencing at the tower is — 

No. ii. JOHN BALDWIN. 

Obit 16S1. 
MARY ins Wife. 

A large number of the name in Milford descend from 
John, who was twice married, his second wife being Mary, 
sister of Obediah Bruen, who was one of the Patentees under 
the Charter of Connecticut. She was the daughter of John of 
Bruen, of Stapleford, Cheshire, England, and her pedigree can 
be traced to Robert Le Bruen, in 1230, and through her grand- 
mother, Dorothy Holford, to royal blood. 

The gift of Rev. Leonidas B. Baldwin and Rev. Elijah 
Clark Baldwin, his descendants. 

No. 12. JOSEPH NORTHRUP. 

Obit 1669. 
MARY ins Wife. 

This clan has mostly passed away from Milford, but the 
West, South, and even Canada have his descendants, and one 
prominent in the Church of Rome (the Bishop of South Caro- 
lina) is traced to him. 

His wife was Mary Norton, daughter of Francis, and from 
this couple descend Hon. Joel T. Headley, the wife of Noah 
T. Porter, President of Yale College, and Comptroller Abijah 
Carrington, of Milford. The name is now often spelled 
Northrop. 

Hon. A. Judd Northrup, of Syracuse, N. Y., editor of the 
Northrup Genealogy, gives this stone. 

No. 13. JOHN BURWELL. 

Obit 1649. 
ALICE his Wife. 

The Burwells were large land-holders in Milford, and Bur- 
well's Farms were called so from ownership of this family. 
Few of the name are left in Milford. His widow married 
Joseph Peck (28). His estate was appraised by Colonel Robert 
Treat and Alex. Bryan (3). 

The Burwells, of New Haven, give this stone. 
No. 14. \ATII WII'.I, BALDWIN. 

Obit 1650. 
ABIGAIL his Wife. 



14 

Nos. T4, 15 and 16 were brothers, sons of Richard Bald- 
win, of Cholesbury, Buckinghamshire, England. Judge C. C. 
Baldwin, Cleveland, Ohio, says that an unusual number of his 
descendants have been eminent — Governor Henry Porter 
Baldwin, of Michigan ; Henry Baldwin, Judge of the United 
States Supreme Court, from 1829 to 1844 ; Brigadier General 
Heber Baldwin; Henry Baldwin Hyde (President of the 
Equitable Life Assurance Company of New York) ; Simeon 
Baldwin Chittenden, M. C. from Brooklyn, N. Y. ; Joseph 
Glover Baldwin, Judge Supreme Court California, descend 
from Nathaniel. His wife was Abigail Camp. (Probably a 
daughter of the first Nicholas Camp.) (22) 

Two of his sons married sisters — daughters of Henry 
Botsford (26.) 

The stone is the contribution of Robert Baldwin, Esq., of 
Baltimore, Md. 

No. 15. JOSEPH BALDWIN. 

Obit 1690. 
HANNAH his Wife. 

Many of the prominent Baldwins of Milford are his de- 
scendants, and have had considerable influence in Milford's 
prosperity. Nathan A. Baldwin and Albert A. Baldwin have 
paid out millions to their operatives, and at this writing give 
employment to a large number. Joseph's house lot was next 
to that of Nicholas Camp (22), and some of his descendants 
are now living on it. His son David married Mary, daughter 
of Ensign John Stream (23), and those now in Milford come 
from this marriage. 

This stone is the gift of Mrs. Lucy Baldwin Stevens, of 
New York. 

No. 16. TIMOTHY BALDWIN. 

Obit I664. 
MARY his Wife. 

There is none of the male lines of Timothy living, and 
the blood all comes in female lines by marriages to Bucking- 
hams, Beards and Botsfords. 

His son Timothy was one of the committee appointed by 
the Court at Hartford for the regulation of the Township of 
New Milford, and he married Mary, daughter of John Beard. 
(He came a child with his mother, "Martha," in 1639.) See 



i5 

coping under (23). The gravestones of the son Timothy and 
his wife are in good preservation, and from them descends the 
giver of the stone, John C. O'Conor, Jr., of New York, who 
also descends from (3) Alex. Bryan. 

No. 17. ROBERT PLUMB. 

Obit 1655. 
MARY BALDWIN his Wife. 

Probably all of this name in Milford come from Robert, 
and he was most likely son of Mr. John Plum, of Weathers- 
field. 

P. B. Plumb, United States Senator from Kansas, de- 
scends from Robert, whose wife was daughter of Sylvester and 
Sarah (Bryan) Baldwin and sister to Sarah, wife of Benjamin 
Fenn (5). She was baptised April 22, 162 1, and her father 
died on the ship Martin during the passage here. 

This stone, the gift of George Plumb, of Milford. 

Under this stone on the coping is the inscription to her 
mother . 

SARAH BALDWIN (widow of) SYLVESTER. 
Obit 1669. 

This woman was evidently wealthy for the times, and in 
1640 married Captain John Astwood, one of the seven pillars 
and judges of Milford. 

Captain Astwood went to London on business for the Col- 
ony and died there about 1653. His widow in her will gives 
her daughter " Mary " above, one book called " The Soule's 
Conflict," with most of her goods and chattels, and calls 
Richard Piatt (10) her brother. (How; was his wife a Bryan ?) 

Judge C. C. Baldwin contributes this inscription also : 

No. iS. GEORGE CLARK. 

Obit 1690. 
SARAH his Wife. 

This George was brother to John Clark, of Saybrook.who 
removed thence to Milford and was made deacon of the first 
church, and married here the widow of Deacon John Fletcher. 
His brother Daniel was one of the patentees under the famous 
charter from Charles II. His only son, John, probably died 
without issue soon after his father. His daughter, Ruth, 
married Thomas Fitch, of Norwalk, and her grandson was 



i6 

Governor Thomas Fitch, of Connecticut. Abigail, his daughter, 
married Abraham Pierson, first rector of Yale College. Sarah 
married first, Reynold Marvin, the celebrated Indian fighler, 
and after his death married Captain Joseph Sill, and from the 
latter union Lieutenant Governor George Griswold Sill de- 
scends. 

Mrs. Evelyn McCurdy Salisbury (wife of Professor 
Edward E.), a descendant of Reynold Marvin, gives this stone. 

No. 19. MILES MERWIN. 

Obit 1697. 
SARA his Wife. 

All of the name in Milford descend from him, and his 
tombstone is the only one of a settler in our graveyard. It 
has been engraved and published in the book on the "old 
gravestones of Milford." A most interesting deed of entail 
made by him can be seen on Milford land records. He evi- 
dently had three wives, but the name of the first is unknown. 
His second was the widow of Thomas Beach, and she by birth 
was the daughter of Richard Piatt (10). 

Lieutenant Governor Samuel E. Merwin, of New Haven, is 
a descendant, as is also the donor of the stone, Mrs. Edwin P. 

Smith. 

No. 18. THOMAS WELCH. 

Obit 1681. 
HANNAH his Wife. 

He married the oldest daughter of Thomas Buckingham 
(9), and was representative for Milford in 1659; also one of 
the seven pillars of the church. 

The last deed given by the Indians (of Milford land) was 
for what is now known as Welch's Point. It consisted of 20 
acres, and the Indians received 6 coats, 2 blankets, and 3 pairs 
of breeches, and Thomas Welch bought it from the Town at 
public outcry for ,£21 6s — about $100. 

That deed from the Indians is the most pathetic deed on 
our records. Florence L. and Nathala P., daughters of Rev. 
Nathan Tibbals Merwin , give this stone. They have the blood 
of Thomas Welch, both from father nnd mother. 

No. 22. NICHOLAS CAMP. 

SARAH his Wife. 

It is not known when he died ; Lambert says in 1706, but 
that was his son Nicholas, as a computation from the grave- 



>7 

stone will show. Some of his descendants are on the original 
house lot at this day ; others left Milford and were early set- 
tlers in new towns, and from them have sprang many-influ- 
ential men. 

Win. A. Camp, Esq., manager of the New York Clearing 
House, comes from the Durham branch. 

Ellery Camp, of New Haven, gives this stone. 

No. 23. JOHN STREAM. 

Obit 1685. 
MARTHA BEARD HIS Wife. 

He is called on Town records " Ensign." He had five 
daughters. Mary married David Baldwin, son of Joseph (15), 
Abigail married Thomas Tibbals, son of the pioneer. Sarah 
married Ephraim Burwell, son of John (13). Martha married 
Thomas Coley, son of Samuel, one of the men of 1639. Under 
this block on the coping is cut the name of his mother-in-law, 
MARTHA BEARD (widow). 

Lambert says she brought with her three sons and three 
daughters ; that James died in 1642, and his estate was settled 
by Captain Astvvood, and it was the first estate administered 
upon in Milford. Jeremy probably died without issue, as his 
estate was divided between his brother, Captain John Beard, 
John Stream, and Nicholas Camp, " husbands of his sisters," 
says the record. They may have let their wives have a little 
of it. All of the name in Milford descend from her son John, 
who had the military title of Captain. Her husband probably 
died on the ship (Martin ?) on passage over, and in considera- 
tion of her affliction the town gave her an extra amount of land 
in the divisions. Her home lot took in the land on Broad 
street, extending from Mr. Charles A. Tomlinson's corner to 
the large elm in John G. North's place. 

David Bryan Ingersol, a descendant through her grand- 
daughter, Mary (Stream) Baldwin, gives this stone. 

No. 24. THOMAS FORD. 

ELIZABETH his Wife. 

The date of his death is not known, but it was before 
1663, as in March of that year his widow married Eliezer 
Rogers, son of John, the settler. She was by birth the daugh- 
ter of Alexander Knowles, of Fairfield, and her father in 1658 



was Assistant of the Colony of Connecticut. Her daughter 
Lydia married John Newton in 1680 (probably son of the 
Pastor), was soon a widow, but evidently a smart business 
woman, and reached a ripe old age. 

His descendants in Milford contribute the stone. 

No. 25. SARGr THOMAS CAMPFIELD. 

Obit 1689. 
PHEBE CR-A-N-E his Wife. 

None of his clan name are now in Milford, and the blood 
here is all through his daughters. Sarah married Josiah Piatt, 
son of Richard (10), and Phebe married John Smith, son of 
John (29). The Sergeant was brother to Mathew Campfield) 
one of the charterers under Charles II. This name of Camp- 
field was originally de Philo, and from grants on the river 
Cam (for services at the battle of Cressy), became Cam de Filo, 
Camfield, and is now Canfield in many places. 

This stone is the gift of several descendants widely scat- 
tered. 

No. 26. HENRY BOTSFORD. 

Obit 1686. 
ELIZABETH his Wife. 

He had only one son, Elnathan, but of daughters five. 

Elnathan married twice, and the name continues from the 
son of the second wife, Hannah, the daughter of Timothy 
Baldwin (16). The writer has the signature of Elnathan as 
witness to a deed dated in 1667, one of the oldest signatures in 
Milford, the signer being born in 1641. 

Some of his grandchildren settled in Newtown, and the 
giver of the stone comes from John of 1681; a veteran of four 
years in the war of the rebellion — Major J. L. Botsford, of 
Youngstown, Ohio. 

No. 27. JAMES ROGERS. 

Obit 1688. 
ELIZABETH his Wife. 

He was brother to John Rogers, the settler, but soon after 
moved to New London after marrying Elizabeth Rowland, of 
Stratford. He was considered, next to Governor Winthrop, 
the richest man in the Colony of Connecticut. From him de- 
scended the religious cranks known as Rogerenes ; also Cap- 



19 

tain Moses Rogers, commander of the steamer Savannah, the 
first steamer to cross the Atlantic in i <S i 9 ; also Mary Rogers, 
the beautiful cigar girl, who was murdered many years ago at 
Hoboken, a mystery that gave Edgar A. Poe the plot for his 
story of Marie Roget. The blood returned to Milford in 
Timothy Rogers, the grandfather of Hon. Isaac T. Rogers, 
who contributes the stone. 

No. 28. JOSEPH PECK. 

Obit 1701. 
AEICE his Wife. 

He was not a member of the first group of settlers, but 
his descendants have been prominent in Milford affairs. His 
grandson, Captain Samuel Peck, commanded the company 
raised by Milford for the Continental Army during the Revo- 
lution. Isaac was in the army and drowned while in service. 
Phineas died from cruel treatment received from the British. 
Major General John J. Peck, prominent in the Mexican and 
Rebellion wars, is a descendant. 

Alice, his wife, was the widow of John Burwell (13). 

Samuel C. and James, sons of Samuel Peck, of Milford, 

give the stone. 

JOHN SMITH. 

Obit 1684. 

GRACE his Wife. 

He should not be confounded with John Smith, " ye 
Smith," who married the daughter of William Fowler, second 

(1). 

Three, if not four, distinct strains of Smiths are in Mil- 
ford : Those that come from the settlers above, from " ye 
Smith;" from Benjamin, the son of William Smith, of Hun- 
tington, L. I., and from Walter Smith, and there are also de- 
scendants of George Smith, of New Haven, settlers 1638. 
Joseph, the son of Benjamin, was the first Smith to enter Yale 
College. 

Elmore and Robert A. Smith, of New Haven, give the 

stone. 

No. 30. EDMUND TAPP. 

ul.it 1653. 
ANN his Wife. 

He was prominent in Milford's early history, and was one 
of the three that held the important positions of Trustee, 



Pillar of the Church, and Judge. His daughter, Jane, mar- 
ried Governor Robert Treat, and the writer has the flip dog 
said to be used at their wedding. Mary, another daughter, 
was the wife of John Fowler, second (i). Another, Elizabeth, 
married Lieutenant John Nash, of New Haven, who was as- 
sistant Governor from 1672 to 1687. His daughter, Ann, 
married William Gibbard, of New Haven, secretary of the 
Colony 1657, and assistant in 1661. 

No. 21. — Is the contribution of the Odd Fellows of Milford. 
On its upper surface, in polished raised letters, is seen the 

words : 

WEPOWAUG RIVER. 

On the north side, in the same style of letters, 

WEPOWAGE 

and on the keystone an ideal head of Wepowage, from whom 
the lodge takes its name. 

On the inner face of the stone is seen 

THIS TABLET IS PLACED TO 

PERPETUATE THE NAME OF THE 

WEPOWAGE INDIANS, 

BY WEPOWAGE LODGE, NO. 14, I. O. O. F. , 

INSTITUTED JULY II, 1S44. 

Four blocks are without inscriptions, but efforts will be 
madeto have at some future time the names of Nathaniel 
Briscoe, Thomas Sanford, Roger Terrill, Wm. Wheeler, John 
Lane, Thomas Hine, John Rogers, John Fletcher, James 
Prudden, cut. In most cases their descendants have left 
Milford. 

The Tower and Bridge are from designs by Wm. Milne 
Grinnell, of New York. The mason work is by John Beatty, 
of Leets Island, Conn. The carpenter work, by Hezk. B. 
Beardsley, of Milford. The lettering, by C. J. Hughes, of 
Stratford, Conn. 



MAR 4 19U4 LIBRARY OF CONGRESS 



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